is garish and nothing is really emphasized. Figure 4.15 shows what can happen when emphasis is overdone.

While the emphasis in Figure 4.15 was intended to help the respondent, it is likely to have had the opposite effect. Part of the problem is that the designer is asking the question to do too much.

One solution may be to ask two questions: (1) Are you a student (2) Are you employed Another is to use headings to separate the responses applicable to students and those not. While it is tempting to use color for emphasis in Web surveys, color is actually not very good for this purpose. Aside from the association with hyperlinks, there are other reasons why the use of color and especially blue for emphasis may not be a great idea.

As White (1990, p. 122) warns, Do not fall in the trap of thinking that color is as strong as black because it looks brighter, more cheerful, more vibrant, and so more fun to look at. It is not.

You have to compensate for its weakness, to make color as visible as black. There just has to be more of it, so you have to use fatter lines, bolder type, or larger type to overcome the problem. Let s take blue as an example.

, has lower luminosity) than black; therefore, the visual effect is to make it stand out less, not more as intended. However, it may be argued that the change in color contrast from black to blue text is suf cient to draw attention to the emphasized words. Colored text can only be read when it is quite close to the eye s focal point, although color itself can be seen far from the focal point.

In particular, some argue that because human eyes are not designed to see blue as well as other colors, it should not be used for anything that needs to be focused on, such as text (see Horton, 1991). As Grandjean (1987, pp. 30 31) notes, If a reader is familiar with the signi cance of colors, then colors will help to locate the required information quickly, but the recognition of a word or symbol itself depends on the legibility of characters and not on their color.

Following White (1990), one suggestion is if color is used for. General Layout and Design r 159
Figure 4.16 Use of Co .NET Data Matrix ECC200 lor for Emphasis and Question Text.

emphasis, change other features too that is, make the emphasized text bold, or increase the font size. As I discuss in the next section, using color redundantly with other cues makes it easier for color-blind respondents or those using monochrome monitors. Finally, color conveys meaning, as we shall see later.

For example, red should be reserved for error messages or warnings, rather than for emphasis. The example in Figure 4.16 not only uses red for emphasis but also uses blue to distinguish a question lead-in from individual items.

I ll return to the issue of color in the context of color contrast and choice of background colors. The choice of an appropriate color for emphasis should depend, of course, on the choice of background color for the Web survey..

4.2.5. Summary on Typography
With regard to issues barcode data matrix for .NET of typography, here are some summary recommendations: r Choose an appropriate typeface, and use it consistently; in many cases, these decisions have already been made for the parent site. r Resist the urge to be creative in the use of typefaces.

r Do not specify absolute font sizes; allow respondents control over font size. r If you specify relative fonts, do not go below the default settings on the respondent s browser; increase rather than decrease font size. r Use a combination of line length and line spacing to enhance the readability of text.

r Use different typefaces and features consistently to differentiate different types of text (questions, response options, instructions, links, etc.)..

160 r Designing Effec tive Web Surveys r Don t mix different typographic devices; that is, don t use CAPS, bold, and underline, and certainly not ALL TOGETHER. r Use emphasis selectively and sparingly. This can all be summarized in the following admonition: Typography is a powerful tool use it wisely.